SYMBOLISMS 



T. CARL WHITMER 




Class _:H-^ 
Book_jfolS3- 
CopyrightN" 



COPyRlGHT DEPOSIT. 



SYMBOLISMS 



T. CARL WHITMER 







BOSTON 

RICHARD G. BADGER 

THE GORHAM PRESS 
1909 



Copyright 1909 by T. Carl Whitmer 



All Rights Reserved ^ 



The Qorham Press, Boston, U. S. Ae 



GIA2533G4 



CONTENTS 

The Grinding 7 

The Earthen 11 

Interlude : The Cycle 16 

The Mother 18 

World Rest 20 

The Darkening 22 



SYMBOLISMS 



THE GRINDING 

"two women shall be grinding at the 
mill; the one shall be taken and the 

OTHER left". 

Two women — middle aged — in Eastern 
costume. Both are grinding at mills. They 
speak : 

ONE. 

I love. 
THE OTHER. 

I hate. 
ONE. 

We grind 

And grind 
THE OTHER. 

Early and late. 
ONE. 

I love; you hate. 
THE OTHER. 

Yet we grind 

And grind 

Both alike. 
And 

Both wait. 



ONE. 

Yet we grind 

And grind 

Although I love. 
I love; 

You hate. 



I see now In the clouds (pointing) 
A little spot. 
THE OTHER. 

(Looks below toward the sea.) 

ONE. 

(Eagerly) 
There Is a greater spot In the clouds; 
It Is as a mighty hand! 
THE OTHER. 
( Calmly ) 

I look to the sea. 

Nothing Is there but 

A foam! 

ONE. 

I see God! 
THE OTHER. 

I see nothing; 

But I hear the wind. 
8 



ONE. 

(affrighted) 

I see God In the cloud ! 
I see — Him ! ! 

(listening) I hear Him now ! (eagerly) 
THE OTHER. 

I hear the wind 

And the foam dash 
And the waves. 

And now the bird-scream ! 
ONE. 

(quietly) 

O sweet God! 

(She disappears) 

THE OTHER. 

I hear the wind 

And the foam-dash 
And the waves. 

You (pointing above) loved. 

I hate. 

I — am alone. 

I — wait I 

I hear the wind 

And the Waves. 
9 



(grinding) 

But I must grind 
And grind 

Early and late. 

I grind 

And grind. 

Grind, 

Grind 

And 

Wait!! 



lO 



II 

THE EARTHEN 

"Then shall two be in the field; the 
one shall be taken and the other 

LEFT." 

THE YOUNGER. 

(to himself) 
I love. 
THE OLDER. 

(to himself) 
I hate. 
THE YOUNGER. 

{to THE older) 

We work 
And work. 
THE OLDER. 

( bitterly ) 

And wait 
And — wait. 

THE YOUNGER. 

Why do you work? 
THE OLDER. 

To keep three lives in 

Hate! 
II 



And you? 
THE YOUNGER. 

The day comes sooner. 
THE OLDER. 

But night Is softer; 

Night is sweeter. 
THE YOUNGER. 

I long for the day. 
THE OLDER. 

(starting his plough) 
I hate the light I 

THE YOUNGER. 

(eagerly) 

An Angel 

Is in my furrow. 
THE OLDER. 

(with a curse) 

Rocks and earth — only I 
THE YOUNGER. 

The Angel beckons. 

(spurring on his oxen) 
Yes, I come. 
THE OLDER. 

(He tries to hurry his oxen. Then 
finding they will move no faster, he says:) 
They cannot move faster. 
(stopping them) 

12 



There ! 
What do you see? 
{Running towards THE YOUNGER) 

Tell me, 
What do you see? 
THE YOUNGER. 

{looking upwards) 
I cornel 

Ah ! I knew Thy arms 
Were gentle. 
{He disappears. His oxen stand by the fur- 
row.) 
THE OLDER. 

{looking towards the sky) 
Nothing but a 

White Cloud! 

{He goes to the oxen of the younger) 
Your oxen have seen the Angel. 
I will look Into their eyes; 
And I, too, 

I shall see! 

And I will yoke 

Thine to mine 

And they shall draw together. 
Early and late 



13 



Will I work; 
And— O God- 
Wait! 

{He leads the oxen to his own. They plough.) 
Perhaps I shall see what 
He saw. 
There! {His own oxen stumble.) 
No, it is a rock. 

{They stumble again.) 
They draw not well. 
{He lashes them and gives an oath.) 
{mutters) 

Rocks ! Rocks ! 

{He lashes them again and mut- 
ters his curses. ) 
You loved; 

I hate. 
I work 

And work 

And— 
I hate the light. 

I hate the — 
( curses ) 

To keep three lives 
In — hate ! 
I work 

14 



Early and late. 
Work 

Work 

And 

Wait 1 1 



15 



Ill 

INTERLUDE: THE CYCLE 

A night; 

Stars and the moon; 
A wind; 

A sheet of light ; 
A dawn; 

A Day. 



When the golden haze is last upon the autumn 

leaf; 
When the birds upon the boughs, wrapped 

within that burning color, cease their 

songs ; 
When the grinding of labor is done; 
When the horses of the ploughmen see God ; 
When the world revolving in inconceivable 

space disintegrates and becomes new 

Force ; 
When mortality is robed in the spaceless, un- 

crushable immortality; 
When bodies change into pulses; 
Then again come 

i6 



A night; 

Some stars ; 
A moon; 

Leaf odor; 
Gentle winds ; 
Grayness ; 
Dawn ; 

Color ; 

A flash; 
Day; 

The Eternity I- 



17 



IV 

THE MOTHER 

"The children are come to the birth ; 
and there is not strength to bring 

FORTH." 

{A woman lies in a bed. Her husband is in 
the shadow of a distant corner.^ 
WOMAN speaks: 

Come to my side, Dear, 

And wait; not from yonder. 

Come (gasps) — to — my — side. 

Look! (gasps again) 

Can — yoU' — (pointing upwards) 

(Her head falls back.) 

(reviving) 

I see the child — that I — 

I see it with God! 

And now, 

God reaches out His arms for me. 
i8 



So you beckoned me 

When you loved me to be near 

And I came. 

Shall I not go to Him? 

I am going away 

Slowly 



Slowly- 
O God, may he not come? 
Call, 



Call him ! 



19 



n 



WORLD REST 

*The strong men shall bow them- 
selves." 

Two men at the edge of a wood 
THE ONE talks: 

Yonder, Majji, is the sun; 
But it shall not last 
And the grass on the side of the hill: 
See ! It is growing brown even now. 

The sun shall be no more; 

The moon and stars are near their end; 

The world is going to its rest. 

The faint light you see 
Is the sun's last effort. 

I hear another song, Majji I 
It is the voice of a woman. 
I thought we had heard 

The last voice. 
The world is near its end. 
Soon — 

(Majji is taken) 
20 



Majji! 

Where have you gone? 
Where the sun's light is? 
Where the stars are? 



I am ready, too; 

I am ready. 



{eagerly) Majji 



iiil 



21 



VI 
THE DARKENING 
'And those that look out of the 



Near a wood. A man and a woman stand 
within a latticed window. The sun is ob- 
scured by a light mist which gradually be- 
comes thicker and thicker, first brown and 
then a reddish black, 

THE WOMAN : 

{Sings in a low voice. Then a 
silence. She turns to the man 
and says:) 

The sun Is almost gone. 

No light upon your face, Dear. 

Ah! one ray is left. 

Put your arms about me; 
Draw my head to your breast; 
We can love but a moment. 
{They stand in silence) 



22 



I see a Hand 

In the darkness of the cloud. 

It is an Angel's. 

I Hear a Voice ! 

(VOICE: 

I am Gabriel that 
Stand in the 

Presence of GOD ! ) 

It calls you, now, Sari. 
(Sari disappears) 
I see the Hand again 
In the blackness of the cloud. 
It is beckoning for me. 



Come, 



I am ready. 

Come and take me 

To my Beloved. 



Yours arms are gentle. 



Gentler, 
Softer, 

Sweeter than 

I knew, 

GOD! 
23 



One copy del. to Cat. Div. 



DEC 21 1909 p 



